Etch 'n Sketch Reflections

That's been me for most of the last few days of winter break. It's just really hard to wake up on any given morning of break and know what day it is! So, yeah, maybe I kind of forgot that today was Thursday and that I needed to work on my blog (although once I did realize it, I seriously thought about not doing it). Nevertheless, I figured I would at least do a short post. I can't really say I have a lot to report on since last week, as this has been some much-needed rest and relaxation time during the holidays. I've had some nice time with family and friends so far, as well as some additional get-togethers scheduled in the coming days. Winter break has also been a good opportunity to take care of some "to-do" items around the house. And, of course, there is grading and planning to do. Those projects that my classes wrapped up prior to leaving for the break are waiting to be graded, so I am carving out some time to solely focus on them. So, seeing as how I...

It's been a whirlwind of a week leading up to Winter Break, but the students have been kept pretty busy this week to keep their minds occupied and not distracted by the coming vacation. Both the 7th and 8th-grade classes have been wrapping up some projects. Of course, there were still occurrences that drew their attention away from their work, but I have to say how proud of them I am that they were able to hold things together and be productive. The 7th graders have been working on group projects related to natural hazards, in which they got to select a weather-related natural hazard to learn more about and then create a presentation. The students needed to research what causes the hazards, where the hazards are typically located, the frequency and strength of the hazards, the effects of the hazards, and what technologies have been developed to mitigate the effects. The students were given a few ideas for how they would like to give their presentations, and most of them chose to m...

That how these last few weeks have been! It's crazy to think that next Thursday I'll be posting this blog with just one day left before Christmas break...but time flies! Speaking of flying, we had some fun with flight this week! The 8th grade science students had a design challenge this week to use some engineering skills on a piece of phone book paper to create something called a tumblewing. We were learning about the crosscutting concept of systems and looking into how the different parts of the tumblewing system need to work together to allow the system to operate correctly. To complete the lab, the students needed to first collect some control data by trying to "fly" a regular piece of phone book paper by propelling it with a piece of cardboard, which would create an updraft, and timing how long it took. But, predictably, it pretty much just flopped to the ground. Then they needed to engineer the tumblewings by making folds in the wing that would catch the updraft...

Already? Would you believe me if I told you that today was the 65th day of school? I happen to know because we put the days in our science journal daily entries. And knowing what point we are at in the school year makes me feel pretty good when I think about my pace in my units. We are one-third of the way through the school year, and in both my 7th and 8th grade classes we have completed two of our 6 units (for those of you who are a little rusty with your calculations, that is also one-third :-) Not too shabby, if I say so myself! (Knock on wood) It's been another pretty good week (and it didn't feel as long as last week). The 7th grade students have been hard at work applying some of their math skills in the science classroom by graphing and analyzing average and interpreting temperature data for the last 116 years in order to make a claim about global temperature patterns. Additionally, the students continued to work on climate change projects that they started at the end ...

That pretty much sums it up. As I sit here typing this, I have that hazy feeling of, "Wait, Monday was only a few days ago...why can't I remember it?" This was just one of those weeks that was chock-full of stuff. But even though I can't remember Monday, I know it was a good day. Because if it was a bad day, I would know. Okay, I shook off some of the cobwebs , and now I am remembering Monday (actually I cheated and looked at my lesson plans). My 7th graders this week started our next unit on extreme weather, climate change, and human impacts. We took a look at one of the standards and broke it down into a more student-friendly language so that we can relate to it more. I like doing this with the class and then writing the standards & translations next to each other on the window so that the students can see the scientific terminology along with the personal meanings. We then discussed what we know about climate change and then filled in some of the gaps with gui...

We've once again reached that point in the year as the holiday season begins when we turn out thoughts toward that which we are thankful. It is a time, even when things may seem difficult, we can focus on the positives (as well as try to look for how the challenges can help us grow). So, as I think about my life right now, I know that there are many positives and challenges that I can reflect on and be thankful for. I am thankful for the teaching position that I have in a school district that I love to be in. I have always felt welcomed in Sheboygan Falls, and I think my colleagues are some of the best around. I am grateful for my former 3rd grade teammates and the friendships I made at the elementary school, but I am also incredibly thankful for the welcome I received upon my move to the middle school. My partners in the science department and 7th/8th grade teams have been so helpful during my transition to middle school. Additionally, I am thankful to my administrators who saw t...

I think this might be the earliest blog post I've gotten in for this school year! Usually I blog around 9 or 10 at night after I've finished up my prep work for the following day. Because the life of a teacher usually consists of taking work home (especially for me this year). I know (or hope, at least) that as I get more experienced with the 7th and 8th grade curricula after this year, my nights won't be filled with as much prep work. But since everything is new this year, I know that I have extra learning to do on top of the daily lesson presentations. That's why my evening routine is typically get home, make dinner, do family stuff, and then settle in for prep work. Tonight, however, will be different--because tonight there is a Packer game, and I want to enjoy it :-)  And the work my students have been doing has allowed for this opportunity. The 7th grade students have been learning about plate tectonics and plate boundaries. We've been utilizing a variety of r...